Gaisuwa ga 'yanuwa da abokan arziki
Christians in the North (both hausa and non hausa) and Muslims have lived in peace for years without violence. Actions and statements from founding fathers of the north worked hard to eschew unity and peace above all else in the north, because they recognised its potential to disintegrate and destroy the strength of the north economically, politically and socially, while respect for each others faith will breed peace and forge unity. It is on this basis that they allowed religion operate on a more individual basis.
Over the last about 2-2.5 decades there has been a gradual detoriation of relationship between christains and muslims. Intolerance and mistrust are reaching new hieghts amongst northerns all because of our differing religious believes. Religious violence is now common place and sponteaneous resulting in unneccessary destruction of life and property as well as untold hardships to victims and hurting the north as a region. Things have gotten to a point that due to all this some northern area are demanding not to be refered to or recognised as north, because they feel unrecognised, not respected and being attacked on religious grounds by people who claim to be their brothers.
I put it before this forum that this is a very serious problem in the north as it challenges the very existence of the north as it was created and we know. We must not bury our heads in the sand and say these things are just allegations we want proof or that the problem is not as serious as it is doing that is just being in denial. Niether should we want to point accussing fingers to muslims or christains it does not solve the problem. The irony of both religions is that they both claim to be peaceful religions, they preach and profess peace and the very next moment they attack their neighbours and hack them to death or destroy their property.
We need to talk about this problem and impress upon our leaders the need to have peace, the only way we can have this peace is if we talk (muslims and christains). We have to be able to show respect to each other and where one party is about to undertake anything that may affect the other this must be discussed first so that things are done in peace and understanding. We need to have a type of regional conference to discuss these matters. Each state should have a religious council with some legal bite, that will liecience all preachers. Preaching must be restricted to revealing the truth of a religion and not inciting against another. Where cases of incitement occur such preachers can be barred from preaching and even prosecuted if necessary. If one religion feels agrieved by actions of the other the matter should be forwarded to the council, sponteaneous riots or actions such as just happened in Plateau state must be seen as criminal actions, and I do not expect any one to give excuses for such actions. We all (muslim or christains) must call these actions what they are - murder and unlawful destruction of property. We must not allow such things to be explained away as religious violence and thus cover the crime.
May the souls of all those killed in religous violence rest in peace
This is not a religious unrest, let not turn it to that... the really true is that the fulani cattle rearer have no right going to this area, where people of plateau farmer have planted and use their cattle to destroy the land..
SOLUTION:
1. the national assembly should make it illegal for the Catttle rearer to continue with the Normadic system..Nobody should be allow to travel with his cattle by land to another state.
2 All the nine Fulani / hausa state of bauchi, gombe, kano, jigawa,katsina,kaduna,sokoto, kebbi,zamfara state govt should be force to create cattle ranch in all the state... so that they would be no need to move by land..
3 . Do you know the live of fulani children are in danger from this travel. They do not go to school....
We endanger the live of the fulani women, each time they travel... some of them are pregrant. Do you know fulani women, are debatable one of the most beautiful women in Nigeria. but when they get old, they have different problem. I alway like thier women. they look good. not to talk of the health of the farmer
4 . Each of this nine state should start a cattle market that all this fulani can sell thier cattle at good rate like in an Auction to the higest bidder
5 . the federal ministry of water resource should please provider irrigation facitilies to the nine state Cattle gearing ranch..... This ranch would be free to the Cattle farmer for free.. To be called the Cattle Exporting zone (CEZ)
6. This Auction market would be an internal generation to the state involve...
7 This would create job to the nine state... cattle ranch worker.
8 this would drop the price of meat to the final buyer.
9 less work for the fulani man and more money.
mallamt, the main problem is people like you who fail to recorgnise the existence of the middle belt.. We are different from you people. The idea of one north death with Belewa and your leaders. We do not see ourself as part of you. Get that into your head. What relationship does a Tiv man have to do do with Hausa man. You people are day dreaming about your old north idea.. We now have state and We in the middle belt do not want anything to do it you people.. Why cant you people get that into your head. Can you force people to be your friend. We have never had blood relationship with you. the one relationship was 1914.. this is close to 100 years.. And the North thing ended in 1966.. We stand on our own. You people should speak for your self and Not to include us... All of our leaders have made that clear to you. but it look like you people do not get it. Are dumb and deaf...... for the last time THE MIDDLE BELT IS NOT PART OF THE NORTH.
Nigeria only have four region.
Middle belt, West , East and far North. period. Let us determine our own future.. Do not include us in your plan. we are not your brother..
Guest and Dele
I would not laugh at your postings but weep for nigeria! Not only have you both shown an incredible incapability to read or understand the issue raised in my posting but both of you have shown the level of stupidity you carry between your ears.
You do have the right to want to be identified as what ever you want but also remember with rights come responsibilities, and one responsibility is to respect the rights of others. So for all what both of you have said may you please indicate how that advances peaceful co-existence between different religious groups (especially christains and muslims) in the north. I am aware that the standard of education may have droped in nigeria but I am sure it has not dropped to the level both of you are unable to discuss the issue like educated people (thank God for the internet you could even pretend to be educated both of you).
To forumnites I beg you all to ignore the responses of both Dele and Guest, we must not let such contributions derail discussions!
Quote from: "mallamt"Guest and Dele
I would not laugh at your postings but weep for nigeria! Not only have you both shown an incredible incapability to read or understand the issue raised in my posting but both of you have shown the level of stupidity you carry between your ears.
You do have the right to want to be identified as what ever you want but also remember with rights come responsibilities, and one responsibility is to respect the rights of others. So for all what both of you have said may you please indicate how that advances peaceful co-existence between different religious groups (especially christains and muslims) in the north. I am aware that the standard of education may have droped in nigeria but I am sure it has not dropped to the level both of you are unable to discuss the issue like educated people (thank God for the internet you could even pretend to be educated both of you).
To forumnites I beg you all to ignore the responses of both Dele and Guest, we must not let such contributions derail discussions!
Mallamt , it since you have lived abroad too long not to know the problem. The Problem in Plateau state is about Cows eating up people farming. It is not religious.. The Yelwa people are both Christain and muslim. they do not fight with themself, but all they do is fight the fulani. How many times have you ever heard that tribes in Plateau state fight within themself. Except when they fight the Fulani. This is where the problem is. The solution to the problem is to stop the cows from eating the crop, and there would be peace. It has nothing to do with religion, Please like one yoruba man called Orire who is looking for popularity is the problem. It is pure tribe unrest simple.
salam
i am afraid we are trying to trivialize this issue of violence and murder in Plateau. unlike the recurrent killings in Kaduna and Lagos, this bout has a clear manifestation of 'ethnic cleansing' . I just finished reading an article in The Toronto Star in which a high Red Cross official is quoted as saying 500 'non indigenes' were murdered- thats 500 muslims.
regardless of what caused this, no justification can be given for this madness.
That said...............
again, Guest has managed to be stupid in his response to the question at hand. pleteau not being in the middle belt has nothing to-do with the problem. the problem is killing innocent muslims in Yelwa.
To Dele, do you realize these yelwa people are not the nomadic fulanis you are refering to? this are people the governor dariye called 'settlers' ie the muslims who migrated to the hinterland to partake in the mining activities of the jos area. the violence is not due to fulani-cattle eating tarok farm produce. the pattern of violence in Wase and langtang south shows a determined will by the non-muslims to drive out the muslims (Note: about 1000 refugees are now settled in Bauchi).
The solution:
* the federal government has to make it abundantly clear that all communities must live with one another in peace. The 'more recent settlers' have as much rights as the original settlers. failure to comply should be enforced by the army.
* there has to be a massive diasarming campaign to demobilize the large army of retired soldiers in the area.
* and finally, the muslims in the area must be held accountable for any action taken which destroys tarok crops.
like mallammt said an RIP, is well deserved for the fallen.
myadudu
I think the point is not whether it was christains or muslims, the bottom line is that it is wrong (actually murder) and both islam and christainity ourightly forbids this kind of violence. If we can not see each other as human beings - a creation of God! Then we do have a serious problem, I can not see how we claim to be muslums or christains if we would carry out such atrocities.
If the recent violence is ethnic based, where is it coming from? These are peoples that have been staying side by side for years. Does it really matter if the dead are muslims? They are human beings first created by God before they are muslims, so we must respect that first if we do not we will then be able to give excuses for others being killed rather than condeming it.
What you must see even the violence in kaduna which was said to be religious were hundreds of christains were killed and churches burnt. But there were also postulations that they were ethnic what has happend to that case? there are others in Kano, Bauchi, Jos etc. People were killed in these places and others made refugees, infact alot of southerns in the north relocated their families to safer states and their own home states because they saw these violence as having ethnic slants. What I am saying is let us not give excuses for one group over the other the people being killed are our people (nigerians) irrespective of their religion or where they come from in the country. Let us condem them and be consistent with our condemnation. Let us talk about it openly and try and find a way out of this circle of violence. We discuss them on a case by case, give excuses such as them being ethnic, political or religious depending on how we feel thereby watering down the muders and unlawful destrucftion that has taken place, finally there is no one and nothing to prosecute and the mater is swept under the carpet!
I agree with you point that a terminology like "recent settlers" has no place in anyone langauge and people rights must be respected. People must be made to understand that with rights come obligations and one of such obligations is the respect of the rights of others irrespective of race, creed, ethnic background, culture or religion
The disarming campaign must not be restricted to just the area of the recent violence but to the whole region
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Guest
So let us even agree that the problem is the cattle eating up farm produce, does that justify murder? The problem with what you are saying is that in the recent violence those attacked were people resident in the village and I am sure you know the fulani people you are refering to are normadic who do not stay in such villages that were attacked.
All of you, ask your self why is it that the target all over Nigeria is the Hausa/fulani... In Plateau, taraba, Nassarawa, Lagos , sagumu, Aba, Onitsha Everybody is after you people.. It as nothing to do with your religion , so do not hide under the religion... Are the yoruba not Muslim, How many time have people of Plateau killed them. Are there no muslim in the Middle belt... How many time have the Yoruba killed them... The problem is you people... your character is not good. Change and everybody would change the altitude toward you people..... Everybody do not like you... You alway run under the cover of religion... get a life...... No one is after Muslim... everybody is after your bad character... change or expect more blood ...
Mallamt, Do you want to know what we want, We want you people out of Nigeria. Do you remember 1992 military coup of Orka. We want you people out. So get ready. This is our dream and it would come to past....
Middle belt forum
Middle belt ,ive known a few folks in this forum who exhibit shear ignorance and lack of substance, when cornered in a debate, but you are the first person i've seen done so volontarily, its 2004 man , not the f***ing middle ages,
Guest & Middlebelt
You see God gave us all the gray matter between our ears, the way each of us uses it is up to them. Your utterances are disgraceful and embarassing that in this millenium when the rest of the world is trying to discuss problems and resolve them people like you make the type of utterances you make!!! Have you not learnt from what has happened in other parts of the world? Do you know your history or are you just being emotional? The issues you have highlighted can be discussed under a seperate heading not this.
Middlebelt stop making comments you have no clue about, for your information in the coup you are refering to, one of the people executed was my aunts husband who was a fine airforce officer, accussed of involvement. So do not make references or comments of matters you know nothing about!!!
If you guys are just so immpressed with your stupidity and want to display it fine then go set up your corner.
If you find violence, killings (murder) destruction of property unacceptable and must be resolved then let us talk!!
Mallamt why would you want to lie. No Hausa/fulani man was killed in the coup... The main reason for the coup was to liberate us from you... they are all hero.. someday. thier dream would come true... Allah willling.. We really badly want you people out of that country.. If you people know the hate people have for you... from all part of Nigeria. it would be better for your people to leave the country without blood flowing. but if peaceful mean fail.. Bloodly means would be the only option. and the Break up of a nation should not be bloodly, like USSA... that what we want.. but we are ready for a blood one... The middle belt and the south make up 75% of Nigeria... And it is a 1 to 3 fight.... We can wait for a war... It would be a genocide that would be worst than what the German did to the Jews.... People really hate your people.. Igbo hate you and they are looking for reverge.. Yoruba hate you... And we in the Middle belt, would pay you back for all the evil you have done to our people....... Allah willing it shall come to past...
Quote from: "Middle belt"Mallamt why would you want to lie. No Hausa/fulani man was killed in the coup... The main reason for the coup was to liberate us from you... they are all hero.. someday. thier dream would come true... Allah willling.. We really badly want you people out of that country.. If you people know the hate people have for you... from all part of Nigeria. it would be better for your people to leave the country without blood flowing. but if peaceful mean fail.. Bloodly means would be the only option. and the Break up of a nation should not be bloodly, like USSA... that what we want.. but we are ready for a blood one... The middle belt and the south make up 75% of Nigeria... And it is a 1 to 3 fight.... We can wait for a war... It would be a genocide that would be worst than what the German did to the Jews.... People really hate your people.. Igbo hate you and they are looking for reverge.. Yoruba hate you... And we in the Middle belt, would pay you back for all the evil you have done to our people....... Allah willing it shall come to past...
as you can see, the Letter "R" is a bit far from the letter "A", i could have said okay, spelling mistake in the "USSA" written by the guest but ol boy, its clear that the guy didnt know that he was reffering to "USSR" (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics). That, a high school student studying even in cambodia can tell you about! Thank God the guest is a real illiterate,
what i fear is, how many more illiterates are there in the middle belt!
salam
I dont hold brief for Allah. What I do know is that Allah will resent invoking his name is calling for genocidal practices against any people. MiddleBelt is very irrational and callous and the best way to treat him is to deny him an avenue through which he can air his outlandish and blatantly criminal statements (admin please take note).
The issue of killing in the orka coup is very unfortunate. We all know of Lt Col UK Bello who was murdered in relation to that plot. whether or not he is hausa/fulani doesnt matter. the fact that the orka people are willing to kill IBB, himself a middle belter, by mr middlebelt's definitions is indicitive of what the Orkas and Nyams intentions were - Ie to exterminate muslims.
I find it hard to even respond to people like middle-belt and guest because they dont belong here.
i rest my case!
Middle belt and others,
While we try to tolerate all kinds of discussions, we find it very inappropriate for Middle belt to come here in this forum and show this much hatred toward a group of people. Please do not post these kinds of discussions here. I am sure there are plenty of other forums that you can go and share this kind of hate. So you are not welcome here if you continue to post these kind of discussions.
Well, Aminuddeen, Admin, and Al-Hamza,
It is an unfortunate situation ofcourse but know that what Middle belt say is a truth that many other groups in Nigeria today believe. Hausa Fulani is a menace to them and they have to get rid of him by violence. Even the recent violence in Jos points to this thinking. I am from Kaduna State and to this day I cannot remember how many times people of other tribal groupings in my political and social life have voiced out this grief on my face. What Middle belt is saying is in fact not new to many of us down here. We pray life will find more meaning one of these days, that is if days can continue to be counted in 24 hours slice. It is unfortunate.
Middle Belt was right, Bola Ige once said Hausa-Fulani are the Tutsis of Nigeria and therefore deserve what the Hutus of Rwanda are doing to the Tutsi's there. Perharps our people and leaders as well you young intellectuals will find reason to open up a discussion on these things. Cetainly we you find some people voicing out these kind of sentiment you stay cork sure there is more than what tongue can tell.
If we have learnt anything from the Rwandan crisis, it is that hatred is the most destructive of all sentiments. Not only does it blind you, it takes away your humanity and allows you to kill your next door neighbour your children and your parents. Rwanda is living with the shame of the barbaric episode it went through. Both the Tutsis and the Hutus are very ashamed of what happened. So those who have been making references to genocide as the direction in which we are headed should beware.
Education is not just about going to school and learning about the sciences or learning how to read and write. In fact this kind of education is worthless without moral and ethical grounding- this is what makes you a mature human being with the ablility to reflect and think logically. The Rwandans are having now to re-educate themselves on how to be human! I think the signs are very clear that we are now at a cross-roads, Nigerians can either continue to live in ignorance and suffer the consequences of that, or we re-educate ourselves to avoid a perilous fate.
The lesson from this topic from middle belt, is that we hausa/fulani have to change the way we treat other , mostly national politics. We have to change the rule by any means approach our leaders have use in the past by using the military against other group.. what have the common hausa/fulani man gain from the 40 years of our leaders ruling.. NOTHING. our people are still poor. Only the IBB, Atiku, Maruwa have come out of it rich, they are only using us for thier own political/ financial motive. 2007 election vision would only cause other group to hate us.. If you discuss with non Hausa/fualni man, you would discovery that the hate is there and that is what we should try to change.. I believe our leader should forget 2007. If we want the presidency by 2007, after we have rule for almost 40 years. I can see blood. And it may lead to a civic war. I can not see Nigeria after 2007, with the way our leaders are approaching the 2007 election.. We should wait and let the other group in Nigeria cool down. Nigeria would break up in 2007 if our leaders come back in 2007 with this approach.
The lasted infomation is that there has been retaliation in kano to the killings that occured in Plateau. This a big shame which just shows how incapable we are of learning or being or brothers keeper. I find it strange that we are reluctant to discuss it and just keep silent why is that so? Do we think that we are unaffected by these violence for whatever reason? Why are we burying our heads in the sand and hoping these things just blow away? Do we really expect them to go away without our own effort? Why do we find it difficult to discuss these problems? Why is it difficult to respect each others rights and freedom?
It was reported that one of the leaders/organisers of the protest in kano was making statements like the gov. of plateau is in supoort of what happened in his state. This statement is from a person of repute, how can he incite like that? As I have said and believe, these acts are just murder, theft and destruction of property. We must not allow anyone to give religion as an excuse. Kano adopted sharia law believeing that apart from it being a requirement for muslims, it is fairer and dispenses justice faster. It will be of utmost importance to show the people of kano and the world the fairness and speed of this justice system by apprehending all those involved in the protest and punishing them in accordance with the dictates of the sharia being practised in the state. I also believe that islam as it is does not have any place for the type of violence that has been seen in kano, as islam its self professes peace. Failure to do just that will just make people even more skeptical of the sharia practised in the state.
We must find a way out of this circle of violence, and that way is not by brushing aside the matter but by discussing it. We must not discuss it on the basis of who started what or else we will never get a solution. Like it was reported the leader of the riot in kano tried to make a point of the violence in plateau and the killing of the muslims it is a pity he did not go just a step back and talk about the violence in plateau preceeding the latest one where christains (about 40) where locked up in a church and burnt to death by muslims, surely that was not also right. You can not just have selective justice based on ones religion. That is why the who did what in the past can not be used as a basis of discussion but the experiences can. On matters of the past those involved should just be apprehended and let the law take its course, and this should apply to any present and future so called religious uprising.
"I will appeal to you to restrain our Muslim brothers... because if you go for an eye for an eye, this country will be bloody"
"It's time now to put a permanent stop to this whole thing"
These are the words of President Olusegun Obasanjo when he was speaking to a group of muslim clerics that visited him to express concern over the recent religious violence in the country.
His words are very important but how can the violence be stopped permanently?
Nigeria being a multi religious,multi ethnic country is at risk of concurrently encountering religious violence.
I think the revenge killings that took place in Kano (over the Yelwa massacre) could have been avoided had the federal government declared a state of emergency in plateau state.By the declaration of a state of emergency in Plateau state,the muslims in Nigeria will no doubt be satisfied that the government is taking steps to solve the problem.But when they start to institute investigation panels everyone looses confidence.These panels have never helped matters.
What has the government got to loose by declaring a state of emergency in Plateau state?Or is it because it is a P.D.P controlled state?The unworthy comments made by the governor of plateau that all non indigenes vacate his state indicates his support for the violence.
The president and his team have failed nigeria woefully and I am honestly not confident that they would do anything about these riots. His statement to the lmuslim clerics as qouted is not saying much, every nigerian knows that going an eye for an eye would be bloody!!! Who is to put a parmanent stop to this? Are we expecting someone to drop from the sky and do that? The president mus lead and give directions.
Why are people not being arrested and prosecuted for these riots? Why all the commissions and panels what are they doing how many recommendations have been implemented? For as long as people fell they can do these things and get away they will do them! Are we to believe that the president does not know religious matters are an explosive issue in nigeria or is it because the violence mostly occurs in a section of the country? Why has he not had talks and try and bring religious bodies together for them to map a way for peacful co-existance all this time? Nigeria is not the only multi ethnic and mult cultural society in the world how have yhose countries that have been able to live peacefully together done it? Are we a cursed nation that can not live together? How about the security agents with specific reference to intelligence? Why do we have them if intelligence can not be gathered about such things so that they are prevented? After the Jos riots what steps were taken to secure some of the well known hot spots like kano? What are these governors told? hoe can a gov make the type of statement made by that of plateau and every one keeps silent? Is he a gov for christains or for the state? Is he aware of his constitutional responsibilities? In fact I believe if he indeed made that statement he should be impeached same goes to other govs who make similar statements, because they have already prejudiced a category of citizens and have gone against the constitution.
I must say the president is a complete failure on this matter. We as citizens and from northern nigeria must look in to our own interest. We must make concerted effort to come together to insist we want and must live in peace irrespective of our differences. Obviously the president and govs would not do that for us from the way things look, my question is are we (both christians and muslims) tired of these violence and ready to sit and talk to resolve this matter or do we want to kill each other some more?
Middle belt,Dele & Anonymous,
I must say i am not particularly suprised by your unguarded venom and outburst targeted against the Hausa/Fulani Muslims.
It is just a pity that you have been successfuly brainwashed by the unsuccessful politicians into missapropriating your inadequacies at a clearly cultured and contented community.
The misplaced and unjustified hatred displayed by the likes of middle belt was a typical of the mindest of a gloomy frustrated morons,who ignorantly subscribed their failure in life to a seemingly indolent group.
The continued tirade against this percieved docile group, should not be misconstrued to be unreciprocable.Far from it,the world has become more enlightend, that no single group should consider to be the sole custodian and dispenser of uncivilised means of redressing issues.
Therefore, what the middle belt et al should bear in mind is that their enemy is not Muslim or Hausa/Fulani.
They should adjust their life styles by being productive, rather than being jealous at the "cattle rearers" and the cultured Hausa/Fulani who always believed in give & take and live and lets live.
And i do not believe that the opinion of these deranged pretenders is the common refrain of the average so called middle belt.I happened to execcellently interact and associate with people from the central Nigeria.
Therefore,the views of these seemingly frustrated drunkards should not bother any right thinking,educated forumite.Rather, they should be advised to target their frustrations at their leaders, who at various times hold fort under the Nigerian project but failed to address the issues of their people.
It is these people who out of sheer mischief diabolically hides their failure by influencing their ignorant people misdirect their hatred and enmity at an "visigoths of the savannah".
The gratest calamity that can befall this country is when the hated "Northernas", wakes up from their slumber and exerts justice by application of "an eye for an eye...".
A community that has over two hundred years of civilisation can certainly revive its past by demanding to be teated justly and be able to say:enough is enough! :x